Open Architecture Systems

Solutions

Cloud and Infrastructure Solutions

Microsoft Azure and Microsoft 365 — cloud and hybrid infrastructure designed for South African data sovereignty and enterprise performance.

Microsoft Azure. Microsoft 365. Secure hybrid infrastructure. The platforms your organisation depends on — configured, secured, and managed by a trusted partner with over 40 years of enterprise IT experience.

The Configuration Gap

Most South African businesses already pay for Microsoft Azure and Microsoft 365 while maintaining important infrastructure on-premises. Yet the majority use a fraction of the capabilities available to them.

M365 security policies sit at defaults. Conditional access is not enforced. Azure resources are provisioned without cost controls. On-premises infrastructure runs on ageing hypervisors with escalating licence costs.

You are paying for enterprise capability. You are getting basic functionality.

OAS closes the configuration gap. We deploy, secure, and manage your cloud and on-premises infrastructure so you get full value from every rand spent.

Microsoft Azure

Azure is the only global hyperscaler with South African data centres. Your data stays in-country. Your workloads run on enterprise-grade infrastructure. POPIA compliance is built into the foundation.

South African Data Centres

  • South Africa North (Johannesburg) — primary region with Availability Zones for high availability and fault tolerance
  • South Africa West (Cape Town) — secondary region for disaster recovery and geographic redundancy

Local data centres mean your data never crosses South African borders. Data sovereignty is guaranteed by infrastructure, not by contract.

Azure Migration and Management

OAS manages the full lifecycle — assessment, planning, execution, and ongoing optimisation:

Workload assessment

evaluate on-premises applications for cloud readiness

Migration execution

lift-and-shift, re-platform, or modernise workloads on Azure SA infrastructure

Cost optimisation

right-size resources, implement reserved instances, and enforce spending controls

Ongoing management

monitoring, patching, security, and performance tuning

Hybrid Identity With Microsoft Entra

Most SA enterprises run hybrid environments — on-premises Active Directory synchronised with Microsoft Entra (formerly Azure AD). OAS configures conditional access, multi-factor authentication, privileged identity management, and device compliance policies. One identity. Secure access across on-premises and cloud.

Explore Microsoft Azure

Learn more about our Microsoft partnership

Microsoft 365 — Properly Secured

OAS does not simply enable Microsoft 365. We configure it correctly from day one and manage it ongoing.

Most organisations use less than 30 percent of M365 capabilities. Email works. Teams works. SharePoint is half-configured. Security policies remain at defaults. Compliance features sit untouched.

OAS activates the full M365 security and productivity stack:

Conditional access policies

enforce device compliance, location restrictions, and risk-based access controls

Data loss prevention (DLP)

prevent sensitive data leaving your organisation via email, Teams, or SharePoint

Microsoft Defender suite

Defender for Endpoint, Office 365, Identity, and Cloud Apps — deployed and tuned, not left at factory settings

Compliance and retention

eDiscovery, audit logging, and retention policies configured for POPIA, FSCA, and PCI-DSS requirements

The M365 Audit

Already running Microsoft 365? OAS audits your current deployment and activates the security, compliance, and productivity features you are already paying for. Most organisations discover significant untapped value within their existing licences.

On-Premises and Hybrid Infrastructure

OAS designs and manages resilient infrastructure across on-premises data centres and Microsoft Azure. Architecture decisions are based on workload performance, regulatory requirements, operational resilience, and the platforms your organisation already supports.

Platform Assessment and Modernisation

We assess compute, storage, virtualisation, networking, and recovery requirements before recommending a target architecture. This creates a practical modernisation path without tying the solution to a product OAS does not offer.

Managed Hybrid Operations

OAS brings monitoring, identity, security, backup, and cost governance together across on-premises and Azure environments. Your internal team gets consistent visibility while OAS manages day-to-day optimisation and support.

Data Sovereignty and Hybrid Architecture

South African enterprises face a dual requirement: harness cloud scale while keeping sensitive data within national borders.

OAS designs hybrid architectures that address both needs:

Azure SA regions

for cloud workloads with guaranteed data residency

On-premises infrastructure

for workloads requiring physical control, low latency, or air-gapped environments

Microsoft Azure

for disaster recovery, geographic redundancy, and elastic capacity

Citrix DaaS

spanning on-premises and cloud from a single management plane

Every architecture decision considers POPIA, industry-specific regulations, and your organisation's risk posture.

Delivered by OAS

OAS brings deep expertise across Microsoft cloud and hybrid infrastructure:

Azure migration and management

assessment, execution, and ongoing optimisation

M365 security configuration

conditional access, DLP, Defender, and compliance from day one

Infrastructure modernisation

assessment, sizing, migration planning, and operational handover

Virtualisation support

secure and manage supported hypervisor environments without vendor lock-in

Hybrid cloud architecture

on-premises and cloud workloads managed as one environment

Cost governance

Azure spend controls, resource right-sizing, and licence optimisation

Request a Demo — Discuss your cloud and infrastructure strategy with OAS


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